Electric chain-welding machine.



No. 875,910. PATENTED JAN 7, 1908.

H. HBLBERGER. "ELECTRIC CHAIN WELDING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 15, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No. 375,910. PATENTED JAN. v, 1908.

H. HELBERGBR. ELECTRIC CHAIN WELDING MACHINE.

APPLIGATION FILED FBB.15, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET Z.

HUGO HELBERGER, MUNICH, GERMANY.

ELECTRIC CHA IN-WELDING MACHINE Specification of Iietters Patent.

Patented Jan. 7, 1908.

Application lile l February 15. 1904. Serial No. 198,651.

Tocll whom it map 001. .IQT'TL.

Be it known that I, HUGO IIELBERGER, a subject of the King of Bavaria,- and a resi dent ol Munich, in the Kingdom of Bavaria, German Empire, have invented new and useful Improvements in Electric Clrain-VVeldi11g lilachines, of which the following is a specilication.

The subject of my invention is a machine for electrically welding chains,

By means of this invention: 1. The joint oi" the link can be shut up by pressure in any direction during Welding. 2. The mas chine can be. stopped at any moment ,for the introduction of a cold link, and can be started immediately the link has been brought to the welding-heat. 3. The welded link can be removed and a ,new link inserted for welding simultaneously.

My improved machine is shown in the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 is a front elevation; Fig. 2' is a side elevation; lig. 3 is a plan; Fig. 4 an elevation of the upper portion of the machine drawn to an enlarged scale; Fig. 5 is a plan, drawn to an enlarged scale, of the swage and jaws; Fig. 6 is a cross-section through the machine, immediately in front of the sw'age, the latter being shown in elevation with. chain-link in section; Flg. 7 1s a perspective view of the cam actuating the swage.

Various electric chainwelding machines are known in which the joint to be welded is shut up by pressure applied consecutively in longitudinal and in transverse direction, for the purpose of eflecting' an intimate joint. During the pressing operation in the longitudinal direction of the link, the matcrial is upset in the welding-heat, the enlargement being pressed down again by a subsequentvertical pressure after termination of welding. During the second pressing process, the link is, it is true, still in glowing condition, but not at welding-heat. From this it is obvious that this second pressing operation cannot have for its purpose the intimate connection of the material at the welding-joint, but merely the removal of the enlargement due to upsetting. This operation involves hitherto considerable loss of. material, as the latter can only be partially pressed down, the larger part of it remaining as a bur on either'side of the link. This inconx enience is entirely overcome by means of my new welding machine, in which both pressing operations, that is to say, in the loning-jaws or heads a, which serve as electric contact-pieces. Immediately the ends of the link have reached welding-heat, the

tongs Z are brought into action. At, the place of welding the tongs have a kind of swaging-device, O, which embraces the joint to be welded, but only so as loosely to contain it, Without pressure. This swag'e' 0 thus first seizes the joint, whereupon the link is pressed in longitudinal direction by the jaws a, actuated by'the machine. This pressure upsets the material at the joint, but since the latter is. embraced by the swage O, the upsetting can only take place to such extent asthe loose fit between swage and link permits. The swage .ofi ers the greatest resistance 'to further pressing in longitudinal directionjthus the material in the swage Will, to the great advantage of the structure of the iron, be pressed in two directions at'the joint during the welding operation, for the swa e, since it resists upsetting, may be regarded as a press. In pressing a joint in this manner, absolute uniformity of the links bent in a special chain bending machine is assumed, that is to say, on exactly calibrated chain is necessary. If this condition is not met, a displacement of the cam N actuatin the tongs Z, may cause the action of the l atter to be retarded until the jaws a have already operated. In such case the jaws a first up:

the link at the welding-joint and the swage-heads subsequently press the upset portion down-to assume the original thickness of thelink. Whether the tongs Z operate as described to loosely embrace the joint prior to upsetting, or whether they act -after upsetting, and press, the enlargement down,

the tongs always operate while the joint is at welding-heat, so that thorough shutting is insured.

The jaws a, which serve as electric con.

tacts, and are therefore connectedwith the source of electricity, ress the link to be welded, and thus, on t eirends contacting;

that is to say, on passe e of an electric current, theends of the ink are brou ht to Welding heat. In this condition, as a ready CAD - lifted out of ,that is to say,

chain, and the pins 0 c come stated, the link must be pressed in both directions for the )urpose of making an efi'ective joint; in the next moment, however, the current must be broken, in order to prevent the parts melting at the joint. According to my invention 1. provide a cut-out which interrupts the current :mtomatically at the required moment. v The running of the machine, and the on gaging and disengaging mechanism for pressing the links and effecting llow of current,

according to the character oi must be varied the individual links. in a machine in which the character of the links was not thus considered, the links would -burn,' while at an other time links would be insulllciently welded.

In order to enable each link to be treated s ecifically, a counter-shaft Y is employed, (riven by a belt T from the-main shafting and driving by a bolt the machine-shaft P (Fig. 2). Any suitable friction-coupling capable of regulation may be used to connect counter'shaft and ma binc.

In the case of small links, the frictioncoup ling is operated by hand. In the particular friction-construction shown, pressure on the lever X (Fig 2) releases the pawl Z, and simultaneously the wheel 3 presses upon the friction-strap, thus causing starting of the weldingiachine. v

For the purpose of removing the ready welded link from the contact-jaws automatically, and of inserting a new link, two synchronously rotating shafts l1 l) are employed, provided at one end with an cccentrically located pin 0 0 respectively. The shafts I) Z) are so mounted that the center of rotation coincides with the central position of the to rest below the chain. l' t ben the shafts turn, the pins 0 c first lift the chain and the welded link is the contact-jaws o. rotation the chain is advanced, and linallv when the eccentric has reached the highest.

point, and then descends, the chain is lowered, a new link G comes between the contact-jaws (1 The links maybe either all welded consecutively, suitable means for turning over the chain at each link being provided, or the chain may be passed' twice through the machine, alternate links being weldedon each occasion.

The jagvs a are of cast copper and have conical pivots (Z let into two copper barshl. connected to a source of electricity. The link is laid in suitable countersunk portions of the ,]aws a, and by turning the latter on their l l g l l loosely embrace the material at the welding l l I l 1 l l i l l I 1. l

l g l l 'l l l l l l r l (.(llllbllltltltfll of a pair of (in further pivots the open ends of the link are pressed together. The copper jaws 0 thus serve a double purpose: 1. They press the link together 2. They serve to conduct a current. The jaws a are turned pivotally by means of a cam S keyed to the shaft P. The two ant-surfaces N and the springs i move the lever-arms ll, attached to the jaws a, in the directions of the arrows (Fig. 5), whereby the aperture for the link is op spec-lively. in the drawing the closed )OSition is illustrated. The compression 0 the link takes place mostly at the gap, the other side being merely corres ondingly bent, 0wing to the gap of the link being fartherfroni the pivots and therefore more pression than the other side. very little force need pressing operation and link does not become For this reason he expended'for the the rear portion. of the deformed. Thus by the use of the jaws (1 only one side of the link (i is pressed in longitudinal direction during welding.

I further employ a. transformer having a 'n'imury coil and a secondary coil consisting of a single turn K of thickcopper and mounted directly below or adjacent to the welding machine. I

llaving now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is:

i i. in an electric welding machine, the combinntion of a pair of pivotally mounted pressing jaws serving to conduct the current, means for feeding the material to be welded to said jaws, and a member having heads arranged between said jaws and adapted to loosely embrace the material at the welding joint to limit the u 'isctting.

2. in an electric welding machine, the pivotally mounted pressing'jaws serving to conduct t 10 current, means for feeding the material to be welded to said jaws, means for actuating said jaws to cause them to exert pressure on the material to be welded, and amemberbaving heads arranged betwecn said jawsandadapted to joint to limit the upsetting resulting from the pressure exerted by the pressing aws.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specilic ttion in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

I ll lGO IIICLBERGER. Witnesses:

J aAN GRUND, Am. GnUNo ened orclosed reliable to com- I 

